Hi Sam
We are in the process of upgrading from analogue to digital system. We use Warwick District Council:
Sophie Meade,Lifeline Services, Landlord Services, Housing Services, Warwick District Council, own Hall, Parade, Royal Leamington Spa CV32 4AT
Mobile: 07718 575762 Tel: 0300 3035573 e-mail: Sophie.Meade@warwickdc.gov.uk
The full upgrade is to GMS – enabled digital telecare units, including new smoke detectors compatible with the digital lifelines.
We are using the Careium’s Eliza S units which comprises a base unit and a wearable pendant Our units which are used round the homes (unit and pendant) use GSM. They have a roaming sim which picks up on the strongest signal in the area. They can in theory be used anywhere in the country as long as there is a good signal in the area, but they aren’t useable as a wearable device outside of the property.
It is costed at approximately £11,000 for 46 flats and is being implemented one Almshouse at a time. We expect that the £11,000 investment will pay for itself within two years through savings from discontinuing unused landlines and transitioning to VOIP, which offers a monthly saving of over £674.
We have already installed free WiFi in all of our flats partly funded by an Awards for All grant
There are numerous telecare providers offering their services, so make sure you choose what’s best for your scheme. If you are satisfied with your current provider, see what they have to offer. Not only are you then familiar with the contact centre, but they will also have existing knowledge of your residents, rather than providing a completely new data base. Look for ease of installation, and simplicity of use for the resident. We also found it was beneficial to have a unit which was similar in design to the old one (albeit quite a bit smaller) This gave our more cautious residents confidence that they could use it.
For small almshouses / housing providers who are also charities it is worth approaching the Awards For All scheme for help with the cost of moving to installing free Wi-fi for residents.
Our approach is very simplistic and could be replicated by others.The biggest hurdle was the fear of the Scheme Managers in installing the units, having been used to quite a complicated install with the old units! We now find that we can replace on average three every half hour, and we are followed by our Handyman who replaces the smoke detectors at the same time. Because we are doing this in advance of digital switchover, we have the luxury of taking our time, catering for those residents who may not be available on a specific day, and completing one of our larger schemes before we move to the next.
William Clemmey
Chiefofficer@municipal-charities.org.uk